Person Record
Metadata
Name |
Crane, Mary Winslow (Allen) (1902-1982) |
Born |
1902 |
Birthplace |
Norwood, MA |
Places of Residence |
Needham, MA Marathon, FL (retirement home) Lovell (retirement home), 97 Andrews Lane, North Lovell (sold to Howard Rogers in 1966) |
Father |
Frank Gilman Allen |
Mother |
Clara (Winslow) Allen |
Education |
Wellesley College, 1925 |
Notes |
Lived on the Upper Bay of Kezar Lake until her husband died in 1968 and then moved to 1046 Main Street in Center Lovell. Breeder of Great Pyrenees dogs. She established the first kennel in the U.S., Basquaerie Kennels, in Needham, MA. Father was Governor of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. The following is a write-up by the Denver Museum of Nature & Science: "Mary Winslow Allen Crane, along with her husband, Francis V. Crane, during the 1960s and 1970s donated a large collection of American Indian artifacts to the Denver Museum of Natural History (DMNH), now the Denver Museum of Nature & Science. Mary Crane was born in 1902 in Norwood, Mass., daughter of Frank Gilman Allen, who briefly served as governor of Massachusetts from 1929 to 1930. She graduated from Wellesley College in 1925 and two years later married Francis Crane. Mary Crane was interested in American Indians from an early age. Her great-grandfather had started collecting Indian relics in the early days of the United States and amassed a collection that he later passed down to the family. Her husband shared her interest, his own family also having collected Indian artifacts over the years. Starting in the 1950s, the couple began expanding their merged family collections, resulting in a major collection of New World ethnographic and arachaeological materials covering a wide variety of tribes and geographic locales. Some of the collection's outstanding features are Pueblo shields, Yokuts and other California basketry, a peace medal collection and northern Plains pieces. In 1959, the Cranes built the Southeast Museum of the North American Indian at Marathon, Fl., near their second home, to house the collection. But as they continued to acquire more materials, the couple came to feel that the museum was not attracting the kind of visitor base they felt the collection deserved. They also determined that the Florida Keys did not provide an optimum physical or cultural environment for an Indian museum. They learned of potential interest from DMNH, which had recently allocated an entire floor in a newly-built wing of its building to a future North American Indian hall. In 1968, the Cranes donated or loaned their entire collection to DMNH. Francis Crane died the same year. Further donations by Mary Crane over the next decade resulted in the development of the Crane American Indian Hall, which opened in sections from 1974 to 1978. She was elected to the DMNH Board of Trustees in 1972 and served in that position until her death ten years later. Along with her lifelong interest in ethnographic collecting, Mary Crane was a conservationist, birdwatcher, and orchid grower. However, she is best known for her introduction (along with her husband) into the U.S. of the Great Pyrenees breed of dog. She bred and judged the breed internationally and was a leading authority on its history. Mary Crane died in Boston in 1982. The Crane collection at DMNS is considered one of the finest collections of American Indian materials in the U.S. It was an unusual collection, due both to its large size and the representation within it of so many different cultures, a feat rarely achieved by private collectors." |
Occupation |
Collected Native American artifacts (collection is at the Denver Museum of Nature & Science) Conservationist, birdwatcher, and orchid grower Introduced into the US the Great Pyrenees brood of dog (Basquaerie Kennels) Founded the Crane Point Museum & Nature Center in Marathon, FL. |
Spouse |
Francis V. Crane |
Children |
None |
Deceased |
1982 |
Deceased Where |
Lovell |
Related Records
-
Camp Logarithm - 2017.18.0003
Two photos of Camp Logarithm, which was owned by Francis & Mary Crane until Howard Rogers purchased it in 1966. The physical address is 97 Andrews Lane in North Lovell. Taken from Photo CD #13.
Record Type: Photo
-
Canoe Trip Down the Saco River, 1955 - 2017.18.0008
Four photos of Severance Lodge's canoe trip down the Saco River in 1955. Mary Crane can be seen eating on the beach in the last photo. Taken from Photo CD #13.
Record Type: Photo
-
Crane, Mary - 2009.01.0001
Information on Mary Crane. In 1931, Mary and her husband Francis imported several specimens of Great Pyrenees to seriously launch the breed. They founded Basquaerie Kennels in Needham, MA. This kennel became the largest Pyrenean kennel ever to be established, and its breeding line and stud dogs suppled the network of smaller breeders throughout the U.S. and other countries. Located in the file category "People".
Record Type: Archive
-
Francis & Mary Crane - 2017.18.0006
Francis and Mary Crane. Taken from Photo CD #13.
Record Type: Photo
-
-
Loon's Cry, Severance Lodge, 1950s - 2017.18.0009
The Loon's Cry cottage at Severance Lodge in the 1950s. Mary and Francis Crane stayed there when they visited. Taken from Photo CD #13.
Record Type: Photo
-
Mary Crane, 1955 Severance Lodge Fall Cookout - 2017.18.0017
Mary Crane with another couple at a fall cookout at Severance Lodge in 1955. Taken from Photo CD #13.
Record Type: Photo
-
Mary Crane at Kezar Lake - 2017.18.0002
Mary Crane sitting by the shore of Kezar Lake. Taken from Photo CD #13.
Record Type: Photo
-
Mary Crane & Her Great Pyrenese - 2009.09.0001
Three photos of Mary Crane with her Great Pyrenese, taken from her Christmas cards. The first (CD2317) is dated 1977, the second (CD2318) is 1981 and the third (CD2319) is undated. Renee Dutton submitted the following information regarding Mary Crane: "Mrs. Francis V. Crane first lived with her husband, Francis Crane, in North Lovell, Maine on Kezar Lake's Upper Bay. Mary and her husband were responsible for introducing the breed of Great Py...
Record Type: Photo
-
Mary Crane & Leo Wells - 2017.18.0016
Mary Crane with Leo Wells at Severance Lodge in 1957. Taken from Photo CD #13.
Record Type: Photo
-
Mary Crane & Puppy - 2017.18.0001
Mary Crane holding one of her Great Pyrennes puppies. Taken from Photo CD #13.
Record Type: Photo
-
Mary Crane & Seagull - 2017.18.0004
Two photos of Mary Crane feeding a seagull. Photos are dated 1958. Taken from Photo CD #13.
Record Type: Photo
-
Severance Lodge, 1955 - 2017.18.0018
Nine miscellaneous photos taken during Francis and Mary Crane's visit to Severance Lodge in 1955. Taken from Photo CD #13.
Record Type: Photo
-
View from Loon's Cry, Severance Lodge, 1950s - 2017.18.0010
The view from Loon's Cry cottage at Severance Lodge in the 1950s. Mary and Francis Crane stayed there when they visited. Taken from Photo CD #13.
Record Type: Photo
